Message in a Bottle
by SplendentGoddess
Summary: It's been two years. With the mission finally over Inuyasha plans to join Kikyou in hell, but something stops him. Heartbroken, Kagome has already returned to her time. Now Inuyasha's end of the well is sealed, and he must find a way to contact Kagome!
1. Kagome's Farewell

Blanket Disclaimer:

Inuyasha, and the characters therein, are the property of Rumiko Takahashi. I am in no way affiliated with Takahashi, or VIZ Productions.

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This story was originally written in 2005 and now falls into the category of 'off-canon alternative' regarding the completion of the mission. It starts immediately concluding the defeat of Naraku, in a world where the mission took over two years and Kagome is now seventeen and in high school. My advice is to disregard this story's off-canon nature, sit back and enjoy!

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Chapter 1 – Kagome's Farewell

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Awestruck, everyone stood still, holding their breaths while they waited to see if Naraku was truly defeated. No trace of the evil hanyou seemed to remain. Quickly, Miroku removed the wrapping from his hand, and could not conceal his excitement as he confirmed that his kazaana had in fact disappeared. Stealing a quick kiss from his fiancée, Sango opted not to fight back, as this is was definitely happy day, or so they'd thought.

"We did it!" Shippou joyfully proclaimed. Grumbling sarcastically, Inuyasha replied with, "Feh, what do you mean _we?_"

"Hey!" Kagome protested, though she was grinning. "Shippou-chan helped!"

"That's right." Miroku agreed, complimenting the tyke as he bent down to his level before adding, "Never before have I seen such courage."

The Shippou-praising got cut short when a fully conscious and aware Kohaku shyly made his appearance known from behind the trees, and simultaneously, a certain 'mangy wolf' tried to claim his victory prize.

"Kohaku!" Sango cried, tears of joy springing to her eyes upon hearing his reply of "Ane-ue!"

"Well _mutt-face_…" Kouga spat, "I kept up my end of the bargain. Here's my stupid jewel shards, now hand over Kagome!"

Like Inuyasha would agree to a trade like that.

As always, Inuyasha's reply was, "She ain't going anywhere with you, you stupid mangy wolf!"

_Here we go again…_ the future-born-miko thought, although she was still too overjoyed by Naraku's defeat to truly get too angry over the testosterone display.

At least until a certain undead miko unceremoniously reminded the group of her own presence.

"Inuyasha." Kikyou said simply, her tone neutral.

Caught off guard, the hanyou nervously blurted out "Kikyou!" while temporarily forgetting all about defending Kagome from a certain 'mangy wolf'.

Trying not to look too sad as Inuyasha joined Kikyou in conversation, Kagome took it upon herself to give Kouga the polite let-down, which he, as usual, completely brushed off, stating that he'd eventually be back for her before taking off, his two lackeys quick to follow.

Shaking her head, Kagome added the jewel shards from Kouga's legs to the nearly completed jewel they'd acquired at Naraku's demise, quickly confirming that only one more shard remained, the one in Kohaku's neck.

Glancing in Kagome's direction with tears in her eyes, embracing Kohaku tightly in her arms, Sango tried to focus on the reality of the situation.

"You need to complete the jewel, don't you?" she asked, trying with all her might to prevent her tears from falling.

But Kagome was just as emotional as Sango by that point, the miko thinking of her own little brother.

"I…I can't do it!" she cried. "Kohaku will die without his shard."

Looking up innocently at Sesshoumaru, who hadn't yet vacated the scene, Kagome questioned hesitantly... "Um, you could revive him with Tenseiga, couldn't you?"

"Why should I?" was his cold response.

Clenching her brother tighter, Sango hissed "How can you be so cold?"

"Please, Sesshoumaru-sama…" Kagome begged, making sure to add the honorific. "I will be in your debt." she added.

"You have nothing that I want."

Kohaku, aware of the splitting thread from which his life was hung, took that opportunity to speak. "It's okay, Ane-ue, I understand. I deserve to die after everything I've done."

"No! I…I won't let you! At least not alone…" Strengthening her resolve, the female slayer added, "If you die, then I'll go with you!"

"Sango…" Miroku whispered quietly, having no intention of letting his fiancée sacrifice her life for her brother, although he couldn't fault her the desire to do so.

"Don't be foolish." Sesshoumaru stated in disgust.

Turning to abandon the display of crying, sniveling humans, a sudden tug on his sleeve got his attention.

"Sesshoumaru-sama…please save him? It wasn't his fault Naraku made him do bad things."

Looking down at the small child by his side, Kagome could almost swear the Daiyoukai sighed, before stating simply, "Very well."

Wiping away her tears, Sango suddenly cried out, "Oh, thank you!"

The taijiya received nothing but a cold glare in return.

Kagome knew he had only agreed because of Rin, so commenting "Quickly then, let's get this over with." she proceeded before the Daiyoukai had a chance to rethink his decision.

Nodding to Kohaku to be sure he was prepared, Kagome snatched the shard from his neck, causing his lifeless body to collapse against his sister's embrace. Miroku placed his hand on Sango's shoulder in a show of emotional support as she gently laid her brother upon the ground. Even to see Kohaku's dead body for one instant was one instant too long. With a single fluid motion, Sesshoumaru unsheathed Tenseiga and sliced away at the imps of the underworld that had begun crawling over Kohaku's lifeless body. Blinking slowly, Sango's little brother regained consciousness and looked up to meet the Daiyoukai's piercing gaze, before the inu-youkai turned on his heels, and commanding Rin and Jaken to follow, headed swiftly into the forest.

Applying the final shard into the jewel, Kagome observed with baited breath as the now complete Shikon no Tama immediately began purifying itself of all traces of Naraku's corruption, as the once blackened jewel lightened to a heavenly bright white.

Glancing around the clearing for a moment, Kagome saw the joyful tears in Sango's eyes that replaced the ones of sorrow she had only so recently shed. Kohaku was crying as well, his tears apologetic, as the siblings reminisced while Miroku stood idly by, a smile of pure happiness upon his lips at the realization that his new life with Sango could now begin. Shippou was currently chasing a butterfly, and Kirara, having returned to her smaller form, was curled up in a ball resting in the sun, the neko-youkai having probably spent more energy during the battle than the rest of them.

Except for Inuyasha, of course.

Ah yes, Inuyasha… Where was he? Looking around, it didn't take Kagome long to spot him, the inu-hanyou presently still deep in conversation with his first love, the undead miko's shinidamachuu flying around the pair eerily. A small twinge of nausea hit Kagome in the pit of her stomach as she suddenly wondered…now that their mission was over, did that mean that Inuyasha was going to be joining Kikyou in Hell?

"Um…we should probably be heading back." Kagome stated in that moment, hoping her voice didn't betray her breaking heart. "Kaede-obaa-chan should be told the good news."

"What about Inuyasha?" asked Shippou.

"He'll…he'll join up with us later." Kagome muttered, trying to put on a happy face for the child.

"Kagome-chan…" Sango whispered, sensing the heartache of her close friend.

"I'm fine." Kagome quickly reassured the slayer, nervously glancing back in Inuyasha's direction only to note how the hanyou was still deep in conversation with her predecessor, completely oblivious to his friends and their current worries.

Miroku, in awe of the emotional bravery Kagome was portraying, thought to himself… _So, it would appear he's made his decision…_

The inu-tachi, minus their inu, all headed back to Kaede's village, which was only about an hour's journey away. They received heartfelt greeting upon their return by the villagers who saw the completed Shikon no Tama hanging around Kagome's neck, which immediately bespoke of their obvious success.

Somberly, they entered Kaede's hut…

"So ye were successful, then?" the elderly miko inquired immediately upon their entry. "Naraku has been defeated?"

"Yes, Kaede-sama." Miroku began, adding, "He is dead, thanks to Kagome-sama."

"Indeed?" the elder miko asked, eyebrow raised.

"What?" Kagome blurted in surprise, blushing at the houshi's compliment. "Oh nonsense, it was you!" she reciprocated. "You sucked up so much of him when Inu..." Kagome paused, attempting with all her might to prevent her tears from falling at the mention of the hanyou's name. "When Inuyasha broke him apart with the Backlash Wave, and daring the poisonous insects, even!" she finished with an air of enthusiasm, hoping to mask the sadness she felt. "It was definitely thanks to you!"

"Not at all!" Miroku replied with a grin right on her heels of her own compliment. "It was you, Kagome-sama, and your sacred arrows that did most of the damage."

Kagome eventually relented, agreeing, "It was a group effort then, but…thanks."

Listening to the exchange of flattery with amusement in her good eye, Kaede still couldn't help but to notice the missing party. Beginning to fear the worst, especially after Kagome's noticeable choke, she asked tentatively, "Speaking of Inuyasha, why has he not returned with ye?"

"Oh, um…" Sango started for her friend, "He just had a couple of things to take care of, but I'm sure he'll be along any minute."

Kagome flashed the slayer a grateful, yet disbelieving look.

At any rate, the bubble was quickly burst when Shippou ever so tactfully proclaimed, "He ran off with Kikyou again!"

"Shippou!" Sango spat

"What?" he asked, his own annoyance with the hanyou clear as he defended, "It's the truth!"

Sango found herself wishing even harder that Inuyasha were present, just so he could bop Shippou on the head for his thoughtless comment. But the taijiya was pulled from her thoughts when she heard Kagome mumble quietl,y "It's okay…it _is_ the truth."

"I see…" was Kaede's reply.

Kagome spoke up again in that moment, a melancholy sigh escaping her as it became obviously to the others she was trying hard to fight back the tears that were gathering in her eyes.

"I'm…I'm gonna go home, I think." she mumbled, standing up to leave.

"You'll come back, won't you?" the kitsune child asked hesitantly, Shippou's own voice suddenly mirroring the same hopelessness she herself felt.

Bending down and allowing the kit to jump up into her arms, Kagome reassured the boy, "Of course I will."

Ruffling his titian hair she added, "I could _never_ leave _you,_ Shippou-chan!" Playfully pressing her finger to his nose, she added, "I just need to rest for a while, and catch up on schoolwork, but I'll definitely come to visit you all, from time to time."

It would be hard, the miko knew, to continue visiting the past, but she couldn't just walk away from her other friends because Inuyasha had decided to walk away from them all.

"And you'll bring me pocky, won't you?" Shippou asked in that moment, pulling her from her thoughts as she noted the sudden eagerness in his voice.

"Haha, yes, and I'll bring you pocky." Kagome assured him with a chuckle.

Walking over to hug his departing friend, Miroku calmly stated, "Take care of yourself, Kagome-sama. Your presence shall be missed, and your return visits shall be welcomed with open arms."

"Thanks."

"Yes, and don't you forget it!" Sango quickly added, pulling the miko into another hug.

"I won't."

And with that, Kagome headed out the door and down the path towards the Bone Eater's Well.

That walk seemed to take twice as long as usual, and once the well came into view, she could have almost sworn that no matter how much longer she walked, it seemed to stay at the same distance away. Like running down a hallway with an unreachable end, Kagome fell into tunnel vision while she felt the upset she'd been concealing stir up inside of her, and suddenly, she bolted, hoping that she could reach her side of time before she lost complete control.

She was literally a step away from her salvation when a blurry streak of red caught her peripheral vision. Glancing off to the side she saw nothing, but then upon returning her gaze straight ahead, there he was, standing directly in her way, arms tucked into the sleeves of his suikan, a defiant scowl marring his features. .

"Just where do you think _you're_ going in such a hurry?" he demanded.

"Home…" she whispered, trying desperately to fight back the tears that threatened to spill free at any moment.

"You were just gonna leave without even saying goodbye?" Inuyasha asked with hurt in his voice.

"I thought…" she choked, "I thought you'd already left, yourself, without saying goodbye."

He threw on a fake look of irritation, and grumped, "Stupid, I'm right here ain't I?"

"So you are…So…"

"What?"

"Aren't you…I mean…I thought…you're going with her now, aren't you? With Kikyou?"

Kagome's eyes met Inuyasha's, and neither of them could look away. It was that stare, that same gaze she'd caught in him before, when he hadn't looked away, when he'd needed to tell her, had to tell her, that he'd chosen Kikyou.

"Kagome…" He uttered her name so softly that she almost didn't hear it in the air, even though she could read it on his lips, and in his eyes.

"It's okay…I understand." was all she could manage to say in reply.

"It's not what you think…" he wished to explain. "I…I owe her my life. I promised her, I have to…" He choked himself. He didn't really want to go, but he _did _have to. He didn't have a say in the matter.

"I understand…"

"If things were different, if I didn't-"

"I understand…"

"Kagome…" He sighed, wishing she would express the hurt he knew she was feeling, rather than keeping it bottled up like she was.

"Well…you'd better not keep her waiting." she spoke up suddenly, and her words felt like a dagger in his heart. Was that how he was making her feel as well?

Suddenly, Inuyasha lunged forward, pulling her into a quick embrace.

"Kagome…I…I'm sorry."

"It's okay…" she whispered. "You have to keep your promise…you're honorable like that. That's one of the things I love about you."

He jumped, startled by her words. "What?"

"I love you…Inuyasha." She uttered the words so softly that even with his hanyou hearing he had to strain to hear them.

"Kagome…" He wished he could tell her he felt the same way. He _did _feel the same way, he just couldn't tell her it was so.

Looking into her eyes and seeing the unshed tears shimmering in her chocolate orbs, he decided in that moment that maybe it would be okay to show her. Gently lifting her chin with his index finger, Inuyasha slowly brought her lips to his, and the two shared their first, last, and only kiss. The barrier Kagome had put up around her emotions immediately broke apart, Inuyasha's kiss holding more power than the Red Tetsusaiga, and she burst into a river of sobs against his shoulder.

"I *sniff* don't want *sniff* to lose *sniff* you…I *hiccup* can't!"

"Shhhhh" he soothed, gently stroking her hair "It'll be okay. Part of me will always be with you"

"It's not *sniff* the same!" she bellowed.

"I know…" was all he could say in reply.

"No you don't!" she cried, pounding her fists against his chest. Had he been human, her blows actually might have hurt. As it was, his heart was human, and it was hurting plenty in that moment. "You don't care *hiccup* about me!" Kagome wailed.

Sighing, Inuyasha continued to stroke her hair while softly stating, "Kagome…that's not true, and you know it."

Holding her tightly, the hanyou thought to let her get it all out of her system, and try as he might to hold up the tough exterior he was used to showing the world, had somebody been there to observe them in that moment, there would have been no doubt regarding the pain he was also feeling.

"Then why!" Kagome asked frantically.

"You know why…" was his reply. Slowly, settling her face against his chest, resting his cheek atop her head, Inuyasha thought to himself, _How can I do this to her?_

For nearly an hour, the two stood together in a silence broken only by Kagome's gradually subsiding sobs. Eventually, she pulled herself away from his grasp enough to again look him in the eyes, hers puffy and red from the upset. Stepping back a few paces, she reached up to his ear for one last fondle, an act he didn't deny her.

"I'll _never_ forget you…_never_." she proclaimed, determination in her voice.

"Keh…I'll never forget you either" he stated matter-of-factly, before dropping just a bit of his mask as he quietly begged her, "Come on…stop crying…please?"

Wiping her face with her sleeve, Kagome mustered as much of a fake smile she could manage, lowering her hand from his ear to the rosary he wore around his neck.

"Kagome?" he asked with genuine confusion.

Slowly, she reached up with her second hand, and pulled the beads up and over his head.

"You're free from me now…" she said, her breathing still shaky with the ghosts of fallen tears as she spoke. "You've fulfilled your vow to protect me while we completed the jewel, so now go, go complete your other vow, to die with the woman you love."

"Kagome…" he sighed again, truly at a loss for words. She was so selfless, so self-sacrificing, all for his happiness, the exact opposite of Kikyou.

Draping his rosary around her own neck, she entwined it with the string the Shikon no Tama hung from, making the two like one necklace. One necklace she would wear always.

Inuyasha remained silent as he watched her sit upon the edge of the well and swing her feet over, preparing for the drop. Something was nagging at him, something he couldn't command his mouth to form as words…

"Kagome…" he attempted one last time.

"Goodbye, Inuyasha…" she uttered softly.

"Goodbye…" he repeated, and with that she dropped into the darkness which absorbed her in the blue light of time.

Fighting a single tear that dared to breach the barrier of his own eyes, the hanyou thought what he could not bring himself to say out loud.

_It's you that I love…_


	2. Inuyasha's Farewell

Chapter 2 – Inuyasha's Farewell

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No sooner than Inuyasha began debating on abandoning everything he'd just proclaimed by jumping down into the well after Kagome, did Kikyou appear in the nearby woods, the unnatural slithering of her shinidamachuu catching his attention even before he noticed her foul scent on the breeze.

"Inuyasha, are you ready?" she asked, her voice as cold and stoic as ever.

Sighing, he simply muttered, "Yes."

"My reincarnation has returned to her own time, then?" the undead miko asked for clarity.

"Yes." was his emotionless response.

"She never belonged here. You know that." Kikyou stated bitterly.

Inuyasha cringed inwardly at her harshness, thinking… _Yes she did_.

Staring with a piercing gaze that almost suggested she'd read his thoughts, Kikyou turned abruptly, heading back into the trees. "Come, Inuyasha."

Sighing again, he simply replied, "Yes, Kikyou."

As the pair made their way towards the Goshinboku, Inuyasha couldn't help but to keep thoughts of Kagome in his mind…how heart broken she'd looked, how heart broken that'd made _him _feel, and how cold Kikyou seemed to be acting about the whole damn thing. As they reached their destination, the undead miko signaled for her soul stealers to vacate, and they left her, the two now standing completely alone. Alone at the spot where Kikyo had sealed him over fifty years ago, the spot where Kagome had later freed him from that curse. Kikyou intended for it all to end where it had begun. Nobel, if you thought about it, but seeing the sacred tree only caused Inuyasha even more pain…even more heartache. It was almost as if he could feel Kagome embracing the tree in her own time. It was a tree of ages, after all, so maybe Kagome truly was at the Goshinboku of her world in that moment, and he could sense it. Good, he thought then. At least in this one small way, they would always be connected.

Reaching her arms up to embrace Inuyasha, he did not resist nor return Kikyou's brief kiss, as she pulled him closer, wrapping her arms tightly around him.

"Inuyasha…" Kikyou began, starting to sound more like her old self, more like the Kikyou he remembered…yet still did not love any longer. "I have waited for this moment for so very…very long."

"I know…"

His response was void of emotion, which caused her to pause, deciding she needed clarification in that moment. "Is this what you truly want?"

He winced at the question. What kind of a question was that, anyway? He had no choice but to answer "Yes" in a soft whisper, trying to sound as sincere as possible.

"Then let us leave this world for that which is forever. Together as one, our spirits will be free, free in Hell."

A mist began to rise around the pair, quickly concealing their bodies from view, and Kikyou leaned forward in that moment to steal another kiss from the mentally distant hanyou. Something was wrong, the undead miko quickly realized in that moment.

_What's this? His mind is willing, but his heart is not!_

Unlike the last time she had almost been successful taking him into Hell with her, when Inuyasha had fallen under her spell completely, his heart was subconsciously resisting her magic this time around. Before, during her previous attempt, Inuyasha had been completely devoted to Kikyou, in his heart and mind, at least until her _copy _had somehow managed to break through her spell, which should not have been possible. Was it possible, then, that her reincarnation was still spoiling her plans in that moment, even from five hundred years into the future? Was Inuyasha's heart truly so caught up on the woman-child that her magic could not consume him? She could not open the gates of Hell for the two of them until he submitted fully to her spell.

"Inuyasha…" Kikyou began in that moment.

"Yes?" he answered with exasperation present in his voice.

"You do not give yourself fully." she stated matter-of-factly.

"Of course I do!" he spat in denial.

"You do not…" she argued, her tone firm. "You give your mind, but not your heart." she clarified.

"I give my life!" he declared, getting really upset over the whole thing. "I owe you my life for yours, a soul for a soul. That's what I promised. I promised that to appease your spirit, I would join you in Hell. You said you needed my death to find peace."

"Is that still how you feel?" she asked with doubt in her eyes.

"I'm here, aren't I?" he replied sarcastically.

When she squinted her eyes in such a manner to show disgust with his attitude, he reined in his temper, but calmly stated, "I owe you my life, my body, and my soul."

"And…your love?" she ventured, knowing he'd stumble over his own tongue at the question, which was precisely what happened.

"I…uh…"

"I see." she concluded.

"Kikyou, stop talking nonsense and let's just do this thing. I'm here, with you." the hanyou stated.

"You may be here, but you are not _with_ me, not truly." Her voice became free of emotion again, as she asked rather blandly, "Your heart…your love belongs to Kagome, does it not?"

"I don't see why that should matter." he muttered under his breath, not bothering to deny it.

"It does matter…" the undead miko explained in that moment. "I cannot bring you to Hell with me if your full being is not willing to go." She stated it as a simple fact, and did not sound either depressed or rejoiced.

Disbelievingly, Inuyasha questioned, "What do you mean?"

"Just what I said." she answered simply.

"But…Kikyou?" Confusion quickly morphed into anxiety in his voice.

"Go." she stated simply, almost sweetly. "Go be with Kagome, it is what your soul truly desires."

He didn't say anything, so she continued after a moment, once again sounding like the Kikyou he'd once known and loved.

"To be with you is what my soul desires…but my soul is her soul. Perhaps…perhaps it was always _her_, whom you were meant to be with."

"Kikyou…" Inuyasha sighed in both relief and gratitude.

Kissing him gently once more, that time, Inuyasha returned the gesture, recognizing it for the goodbye that it was.

Kikyou stepped back from him then, so that the two of them could gaze into each other's eyes, the mists from her spell having dissipated so that the air around them was clear.

"In a way, she is me, so that will be enough." she said as a passing thought.

"Kikyou, I…I do care about you, and I'll miss you…so much." It was the truth.

"And I you, Inuyasha. I no longer have hatred for you in my heart, and I can leave this world now, and be at peace."

Smiling at her words, Inuyasha tenderly brushed his fingers across her cheek, before tucking a rouge strand of hair back behind her ear. He was glad that she would finally be able to rest after wandering in limbo for so long.

Kikyou smiled in return, and then her body faded away to reveal a pale blue light, as the souls she'd collected over time freed themselves from their imprisonment, floating up into the sky. All but one, the largest soul, Kikyou's original soul, which had been ripped from Kagome; it now flew towards the well to rejoin itself with its other half.

...

Kagome emerged on her side of the well already bursting with a new barrage of falling tears. Running out of the well-house towards the shrine, she stopped as she passed by the Goshinboku. That tree…that cursed tree!

_I wish someone would just chop it down!_ she thought in despair, as the thought of that tree posing a constant reminder of the joy she had once felt only proved to then be a catalyst to the thoughts of pain this day had brought forth.

Slowly, Kagome approached the sacred tree. The jewel around her neck seemed to sparkle more vividly as she approached, but the noonday sun shown brightly from above, so the miko figured it must just be a trick of the light, not to mention how obstructed her vision currently was with tears. Reaching her hand up to touch the spot that had once imprisoned Inuyasha, her beloved Inuyasha, she knew she would always see his presence there in that spot, the spot that no longer grew bark. Feeling something odd, like a spiritual aura tingling against her own, Kagome looked behind her in that moment, and for an instant, for just an instant, she thought that perhaps she saw Inuyasha standing there, looking up at her. Of course, when she blinked he was gone. Her mind was only playing tricks on her. Although, she still felt as though she could feel his presence as she then embraced the god tree. Kagome decided in that moment that she was glad the Goshinboku was still standing, after all, because in that one small way, at least they were still connected.

Turning to head back to her house, Kagome felt another strange presence, and as she looked back in the direction of the well-house, her eyes widened in alarm when she saw a light emerge from the structure, flying straight towards her. The light entered her body, and immediately realizing it was the rest of her soul, the part that had up until that moment been keeping Kikyou 'alive', Kagome understood all too well that its return meant that Kikyou had now passed on back in the past, which also meant…Inuyasha was dead, too.

...

Inuyasha could do nothing but stand there dumbfounded for a moment. Had Kikyou actually passed on…_without_ him? That meant…that meant he was free! Free from his obligations to her. She'd released him, told him to go be with _Kagome_.

Well, what was he standing around there for?

Bounding up, he leapt through the air faster than he'd ever flown before, until be was right at the edge of the well. _Kagome, I'm coming for you…_ he thought…but he thought wrong.

Landing at the bottom of the well, Inuyasha waited for the blue lights of time to embrace him, but the time-slip never came. Looking up to see the bright blue sky, he knew he was still in his world.

"No…"

Leaping out he immediately jumped back in again...still nothing.

"No!"


	3. Time Capsule

Chapter 3 – Time Capsule

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"So, when is the wedding?" Kaede questioned the young couple with a knowing smirk twinkling in her eye.

"Umm, we haven't discussed it yet." Sango stated while blushing slightly.

"No time like the present!" her husband-to-be chimed in.

"Houshi-sama!" Sango yelled, the crimson on her cheeks darkening further.

"My dearest Sango, I meant only that there was no time like the present to _discuss_ the wedding, not to _perform_ the wedding."

"Oh…" the slayer mumbled in reply, now even more embarrassed.

Leaning in, Miroku managed a gentle kiss from his Sango without any objection.

"Ewwww, gross!" Kohaku shrieked teasingly.

Well, okay, _almost_ no objection.

"Better get used to it, Kohaku." Miroku warned with a playful wink. "If you are going to live with your sister and I, then you are going to see a _lot_ of kissing."

Sango, blushing even darker than all previous times combined, managed to suggest to Kohaku that he go outside to play with Shippou. Rolling his eyes at his sister, Kohaku agreed and vacated the hut, clearing the doorway just in time to not get run over by a half-crazed Inuyasha.

"The well is sealed!" he screamed.

"What do you mean, Inuyasha?" asked Miroku.

"Kagome's gone, and I can't get through the well!" He sounded completely panic-stricken.

Sango, having a little knowledge of the workings of the sacred jewel, being from the village of its birth, after all, quietly hypothesized with, "Hmm… It must be because she has the _complete_ Shikon no Tama with her on her side of time, so no part of the jewel remains in this world, allowing the portal to remain open."

"Okay, so then how do I get through?" he demanded impatiently.

"I doubt ye can, Inuyasha." Kaede chimed in, agreeing with the slayer. "Sango knows of what she speaks. It would appear that Kagome can return to us when she chooses, but ye cannot get through to her, not without any shards of the jewel remaining on this side of time to act as a means for the portal to remain open to ye."

After waiting for his turn to speak, Miroku asked politely, "Why do you need to go through the well? If you don't mind my asking."

"What kind of stupid question is that, monk?" Inuyasha hissed. "To get Kagome back, of course!"

Understanding where Miroku was coming from, Sango continued for him. "But…we all thought you were leaving with Kikyou."

Calming down slightly as he realized his friends would obviously have no way of knowing what had just happened between himself and the two miko, Inuyasha plopped himself down around the fire-pit before beginning his story.

"I was, but…apparently…my 'heart' just wasn't in it, she said."

"My sister said, ye mean?" Kaede wished to clarify.

"Yeah," he confirmed, nodding. "Kikyou said that since I love Kagome, I couldn't-"

He was interrupted by a certain soon-to-be ex-monk.

"Whoa, stop right there…" Miroku stated with a raised hand. "_What_ did you just say?"

Lowering his gaze so that nobody could look him in the eyes any longer, the hanyou repeated himself, shame for his belated revelation dripping off his tongue. "I…I love Kagome."

Sango was no help, instantly berating him.

"Well _now's_ a _fine_ time to realize that, baka!" she scolded. "Poor Kagome-chan ran home practically crying her eyes out over you dying for Kikyou!"

Inuyasha cringed at the reminder of Kagome's tears.

"I…I know…I saw her…we spoke…"

"And?" probed the monk.

"And what?"

"Did you tell her you loved her?"

"No, but…she told me she loved me."

Snapping for the second time in a row, the youkai exterminator really let the hanyou have it.

"She _did_? She _finally_ had the courage to tell you how she's _always_ felt, and you just let her _leave?_ Let her think that you _don't_ return her feelings? If I could _sit_ you I would!"

"Calm down, my sweet." Miroku stated quietly.

Inuyasha's ears had lowered further and further at Sango's words, but not really so much due to the volume of her yelling. It was from the depression he felt, the depression she was making _sure_ he felt.

"It's all right…" the inu-hanyou spoke softly in that moment, tilting his eyes up to meet Miroku's for a second as he muttered "…I deserve it."

With his gaze softening in the hanyou's direction at his words, Miroku felt a genuine wave of sympathy for the man. Then, catching notice of something his fiancée had made mention of during her tirade, Miroku commented aloud… "Speaking of _sitting_, where are your beads, Inuyasha?"

He'd actually forgotten he wasn't wearing the rosary for a moment, only having not cringed when Sango had yelled 'sit' because he knew for a fact that the spell wouldn't activate for her; she'd already tried it once in the past.

"Kagome… took them off me." he started, cringing again just at the sound of her name because of how stupid he'd been. "She…she has them with her." he finished.

"I see…" was all Miroku said in response, which ironically provoked more of a reaction from the hanyou than Sango's earlier ranting.

"I get it, okay!" he screamed suddenly. "I screwed up! I admit it! Now how do I _fix_ it?"

"I don't think there's much you _can_ do," the monk replied sympathetically. "Not until Kagome-sama comes back through the well on her own."

"Yeah, she said she'd come back to visit from time to time." Sango interjected, trying to sound positive for her friend, feeling a little guilty of the bashing she'd just given him moments prior. "She promised Shippou, so you know she'll keep her word to the kit." she said, figuring that that'd be enough to lift his spirits, but she was wrong.

Inuyasha flashed her an, _Are you crazy?_ expression before proclaiming, "I can't wait! Who knows how long she'll stay in her world before she decides to come back here for a 'visit'!"

He was right, of course, everyone in the hut thought silently to themselves. After all, Kagome hadn't said how long she would be gone, but from the way she'd said her goodbyes, it _had _sounded like she might be gone for quite a while. Still believing that Inuyasha had left for Hell with Kikyou, the future-born-miko probably wanted to allow herself the necessary time to mourn.

The other occupants of the hut were each pulled from their equally melancholy thoughts when they suddenly heard the hanyou ask, "What if she hooks up with that Ho-ho guy while she's over there?"

"Who?" Miroku and Sango both asked in unison.

"Never mind…" Inuyasha sighed. This was getting him nowhere.

Suddenly, Kaede spoke, and he liked what she had to say.

"Inuyasha, there may be a way to contact Kagome."

That statement from the old miko got everyone's immediate attention; she never seemed to cease to amaze anyone with her wisdom. Even Inuyasha, who always did very well at hiding it, had a certain respect for the old woman.

"Ye know that Kagome lives in our own future, so then it should be possible for ye to write a message to her, and then store it for her to find." Kaede explained.

"But…five hundred years is a long time." Miroku pointed out hesitantly. "Kagome-sama has stated that most parchments from our time are too fragile to touch, that they remain bound and unread." the houshi added, not wishing for his words to sound as pessimistic as they did, but still…

Kaede wasn't fazed, though, and actually agreed with him. "This is true." she stated, adding, "So we shall have to be creative."

"But…" Sango chimed in in that moment. "How will we know nothing interferes with our message before enough time has passed for Kagome-chan to find it?"

"It will be tricky." Kaede agreed. "We shall have to bury it." the miko instructed.

"But how will we write it?" Inuyasha asked then, finally joining in on the conversation. "Anything we buried in the ground would rot long before reaching her time!"

"Not everything…" Kaede answered cryptically, a knowing smirk twinkling in her eye. "There are some things we could bury that would not even begin to decay after five centuries had passed." she stated knowingly, reaching forward and gently fondling between her index and middle finger the fire-rat material of Inuyasha's suikan.

"Of course! The self-healing fire-rat fur!" Miroku stated, lightly slapping his forehead for not having thought of it himself. "It will most certainly survive the passage of time." he agreed, adding, "Good thinking, Kaede-sama."

"Yeah, smart idea Baba..." Inuyasha replied sarcastically, "…except how do we _write_ on _cloth?"_

"I could sew a message onto it." Sango volunteered in that moment.

She might have been raised to be a warrior woman, but that didn't mean she had never learned the basic fundamentals of being a girl. Besides, even the men in her old village had known how to sew, in case their uniforms had required repair work while out on the road.

"But what will you use for thread?" Miroku asked then, stating again how any normal material would surely crumble away after five centuries underground.

"Hah! I got this part answered!" Inuyasha chimed in cheerfully.

Kaede, Miroku and Sango all then looked on in surprise and amazement as Inuyasha proceeded to yank out strand after strand of his own hair. "Keh, even _human_ hair don't rot too fast unless something gets to it, so mine'll last for sure!"

Once he had pulled what he figured would surely be enough, he refolded his arms with a prideful look shining in his eyes for his own genius in that regard, even if it was just for one moment. It still wouldn't make up for how much of an idiot he had been earlier, but that was where the message itself came in.

"White on red will definitely be easy to work with, and to read." Sango complimented. "That was an excellent idea, Inuyasha."

Kaede continued then, explaining to the slayer, "Ye can roll up the finished message and place it inside a glass bottle. That will surely guarantee its safe journey through time."

"Now, the only question remaining is where to bury it." Miroku stated thoughtfully.

But that was no question at all for the hanyou. There wasn't any doubt in Inuyasha's mind as to where the message in the bottle should be buried.

"At the base of the Goshinboku." he stated simply.

That tree was still standing tall and proud in Kagome's time, on the grounds of the shrine at which she lived. It was practically _her_ tree; she was bound to find the message there. Wasn't she?

"Kaede-sama…" Sango asked in that moment, unknowingly voicing the hanyou's concerns. "How do you propose we make it so that Kagome-chan will become aware of the message's presence?"

The slayer did have a good point. After all, Kagome wouldn't just start digging around in her yard for no reason. But Kaede had already formulated a plan, and she explained her idea to the others in that moment. She would make a new rosary, one whose spell linked it directly to the forces of the _completed_ Shikon no Tama. She was certain she could accomplish that connection, on the surface, because after so long the elderly miko was intimately familiar with the feel of the jewel's aura, and could therefore transfer that sensation into the magics of this new rosary. It would be tricky, however. She would have to make sure that the magic was strong enough to keep its potency over a course of five centuries, yet still be weak enough so that in Kagome's past, when she'd been in possession of some of the jewel shards, they alone would not be enough to activate the power of her spell. It was imperative not to interfere with Kagome's previous timeline, what they themselves would now consider to be the past. Events that had already come to play from everyone's perspective, even though as time looped around, those events would come to play again from the perspective of their buried message. Everything had to happen again as it had happened the first time, leaving Kagome to not discover their buried note until after the jewel was completed, or in other words, not until now. Kaede also took into consideration the fact that before any of this had begun, Kagome had previously had the completed Shikon no Tama within her very body, but fortunately, after the two year ordeal, and having been split into many pieces, touched by many youkai, purified, tainted, and purified again, the jewel's aura had changed, and it was the sensation of its new aura which Kaede would imprint upon her rosary.

"But Kagome-chan has already returned to her world with the newly completed jewel around her neck." Sango commented thoughtfully, pondering, "What's to stop her from immediately discovering our message and returning to our time before we even have this conversation? Wouldn't that create one of those para…dox…things that Kagome-chan had mentioned once before?"

"But, my dear Sango…" Miroku pointed out in that moment. "Were Kagome-sama to have discovered our message immediately upon her return to her world, then you are right, she would surely have already returned to ours… which would then not only have prevented this conversation, but your very question. The fact that she is not here now already proves that she shall not return before she is meant to."

"Oh…right."

"The Goshinboku is a tree of ages capable of transcending time." Kaede pointed out in that moment, adding, "I believe that Inuyasha is most wise for suggesting that place for our message to be buried. I have faith that the tree will aid in my powers, and not permit any such paradoxes to take place."

Inuyasha waited patiently for Kaede to finish speaking, then he commented, "Okay, so we got all that figured out." Meeting the miko's gaze head on, he commanded, "Get Sango a needle and let's get started already."

They weren't upset at his sudden bossy attitude; they all understood that his gruff behavior was only a mask for his pain, and the truth was they wanted Kagome back almost as badly as he did. But one tiny little question still remained.

"Inuyasha…" Sango inquired softly. "What do you want me to write?"

Inuyasha gave the matter some genuine thought, a light blush rising to his cheeks, which caused Kaede and Miroku to each raise an eyebrow and pass looks between one another. Leaning forward, Inuyasha whispered his message into Sango's ear. He then used his claws to cut off a rectangular section of fire-rat cloth from the bottom edge of his left sleeve, knowing that the fabric would regenerate itself and that his robe would be whole again by nightfall. Sango, having already been handed a needle by Kaede, immediately began the time-consuming task of stitching the hanyou's heartfelt message. She would write it in first-person on his behalf. After all, this was _his _message, and Kagome deserved to hear Inuyasha's words from his own lips as she read it.


	4. Back to the Future

Chapter 4 – Back to the Future

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_I can't believe it's already been two weeks…_ the miko thought dejectedly, adding sarcastically in her mind, _Time sure flies when you're having fun_.

Sitting at an empty table in the school cafeteria, the miko pulled out her bento box and began eating her lunch.

_Shouldn't the pain have started to fade by now? _she wondered, not tasting her food.

Kagome had spent every night for the last two weeks crying her eyes out, and every day at school acting like a complete recluse. Her friends had even jokingly accused her of being an alien zombie from that American 'Invasion of the Body Snatchers' movie. Even though she would smile, and say that she was fine, they could all tell it was only an act, and a poor one at that.

"What's the matter, Kagome-chan?" inquired Eri, the girl taking a seat next to her somber friend, trying to get to the bottom of Kagome's sudden and lingering depression.

Yuka, agreeing, chimed in in that moment with, "Yeah, you've been acting awfully distant lately." as she took a seat next to Kagome on the other side.

The miko hadn't really been paying that much attention to her surroundings, and only just noticing that her friends were sitting beside her, she looked up while muttering "Huh?" which immediately caused Yuka to spout off with, "See, that's exactly what I mean!"

Kagome again threw on a her fake smile, and stated, "I'm fine, really. I'm just tired."

But Eri wasn't fooled, and quickly decided that she was going to get to the bottom of Kagome's strange behavior right then and there. "Did you and your boyfriend have another fight?"

"Fight?"

Kagome sighed. They hadn't really had a fight, had they?

"No, we didn't have a fight…not really."

"Then what happened?" Ayumi suddenly asked, speaking up for the first time as she took a sit across from Kagome, deep concern for her broken friend reflecting in her voice as well as her eyes.

"He…he left me." Kagome choked out.

"He left you?" Both Eri and Yuka screamed at the same time, then Eri added, "He went off with that _other_ woman, didn't he?"

Kagome didn't answer, but the trio of friends saw a single tear escape the grasp of her eyelids before she had the chance to wipe it away in an attempt to continue pretending she was fine.

"Just forget about him." Yuka tried to reason then. "If he wouldn't hold _you_ as number one, then why should you hold _him_ as number one?"

The short haired girl then fell back on the same routine she'd become quite accustomed to over the last several months, suggesting to Kagome once again that she should perhaps give dating Houjou a try.

"Um…thanks but no thanks." Kagome mumbled while trying not to sound too rude. "I'm not interested in Houjou-kun." she stated matter-of-factly.

"Well at least not _now_ you're not." Eri agreed, asking, "Yuka-chan, what were you thinking?"

Eri, finally on Kagome's side for once over the whole 'Houjou' thing, explained to their friend, "Kagome-chan needs to heal, not jump into a rebound relationship."

"Oh, you're right…" Yuka mumbled quietly, feeling a little guilty for her suggestion.

Ayumi, always the optimist one, reached across the table to touch Kagome's hand in that moment, her voice consoling as she stated, "Don't worry, Kagome-chan. If you two are meant to be together, then he'll come around."

_How do you 'come around' from Hell?_ the miko questioned bitterly, though she knew she couldn't be angry with Ayumi for her words.

She always had kept the more relevant details regarding her life with Inuyasha a secret, so she couldn't very well try to explain how he'd sacrificed his life for his dead girlfriend, now could she?

Hearing the bell that indicated lunchtime was over, Kagome glanced down to her bento box to discover in mild surprise that she had eaten all of her food. She didn't really remember doing so, but there it was. The miko was grateful for her ability to function on autopilot, which she put to good use throughout the rest of the school day, her thoughts focusing on how she wished for nothing more than to crawl under her blankets and just forget about the world. Once school let out, her three friends of course volunteered to walk her home, and she didn't protest, even as they continued to try to come up with things to say that were supposed to cheer her up. She appreciated their efforts, truly she did, and she knew that with time she would really be okay. Couldn't a girl mourn the secret death of her hanyou-love in peace?

Reaching the steps of her shrine, the miko thanked her friends for walking her home, and as they all parted their separate ways, Kagome once again began the ritual that was her nighttime depression.

"How are you feeling today?" her mother asked as she entered the house.

"Better, I suppose." was her automatic reply.

"Is there anything I can do?"

"I don't think so, Mama, but I'll be okay…honest." Kagome lied, not wanting to see the hurt that was showing in her mother's eyes.

Trying to change the subject, Mrs. Higurashi then asked her daughter, "Did you want some dinner?"

"No thanks," was Kagome's reply, adding, "I'll just heat myself up some ramen."

"You've been eating an awful lot of ramen lately." Her mother commented with concern.

"Have I?" Kagome asked, fairly absentmindedly.

Her mother smiled softly, sympathy and understanding in her eyes. She remembered all too well what it was like to lose the man she loved. "It's okay, dear, I'll go fix you some ramen. Will you be eating in your room again?"

Kagome allowed her eyes to momentarily reflect something other than depression, as she silently thanked her mother for her understanding. "Yeah…"

Once in her room, Kagome sat down at her desk and opened her diary. What was once a normal book of adolescent thoughts and reminders of daily events was quickly becoming a dark book of poetry…an outlet Kagome found best suited her particular frame of mind.

_**Don't pull out the knife, that holds my heart in two. Its lacerated blade, is all I have of you.**_

_**Don't wipe away the blood, my heart has cried in vain. I don't want to heal, don't want to lose this pain.**_

_**Don't tell me it will be all right, and wipe the tears I've cried. If I ever lose this feeling, it will be because I've died.**_

_**What first pierced my soul, now binds me to life. Don't take that away from me, don't pull out the knife.**_

Looking up at the clock, Kagome was surprised to note that it was already past ten. How had it gotten so late? Not that it really mattered all that much, since tomorrow was Saturday, so she had no real reason to get out of bed early…or at all.

Then again, after having spent all of last weekend in bed, her mother and Souta were both planning on dragging her out of the house, for _something_ to _do_ as they had so casually put it. Like she wanted to do anything. It felt as though her soul had been ripped away from her completely. Ironically, it wasn't until all of this had happened that her soul had finally been completed. But she would gladly give up part of her soul to resurrect Kikyou again if only it would mean having her Inuyasha back as well. Sharing his affections was better than not having him at all. But it had been his choice to leave with Kikyou, and she had to respect that. If you love something set it free, so they say. It's better to have loved and lost…blah blah blah. Kagome was now fairly certain that those so-called 'experts' on love all lived solitary lives.

Going over to her window, she looked out at the god tree, wondering why her window had to be faced in that direction. Maybe she should switch rooms with Souta. Kagome had left her window open every night since returning from the past. She could never bring herself to close it, even though whenever Inuyasha had come to her window in the middle of the night, he had always been able to open it with ease if it had been closed. The miko felt it was a symbolic gesture more than anything else, like leaving a light on. But a gesture to whom? It wasn't like he could see it, or see _anything_ any more, for that matter.

"Damn it, Kagome, get a grip on yourself!" she hissed into the silence. "He's dead! He's _been_ dead for five hundred years!"

Knowing that didn't help, as she once again found herself gazing out the open window, feeling unusually drawn to the sacred tree as of late. For the last several nights, it was like something in her was demanding she go out to the tree, although she had been continually resisting that pull. Usually, it was easy for her to ignore at night because she had to get to sleep for school the next morning, but she did not have that excuse at the moment, as she once again contemplated heading out into the night, up to Inuyasha's tree, her tree, _their_ tree. Everything was silent in her room, and for a split second, Kagome could almost swear she heard Inuyasha's voice calling her name.

_This isn't healthy…_ she thought, deciding to appease herself by heading down to the tree 'just this once'…to get it out of her system.

Clad in dark blue pajamas, having only slipped a pair of straw sandals upon her sock-clad feet, the raven-haired miko slipped undetected through the night until she reached her destination. Standing at the base of the Goshinboku, Kagome still found in that moment that she could feel Inuyasha's presence, and she supposed she always would. Reaching up, she gently touched the bare spot on the tree, the spot where he had been pinned; she always felt the closest to him in her time whenever she touched that spot.

Suddenly, Kagome noticed that the Shikon no Tama appeared to be glowing brighter than before. Pulling it out from inside her pajama top, she confirmed that it was definitely glowing more brightly, in an almost pulsing sort of manner, like it was trying to get her attention. Not only that, but she also noticed in that moment that a small patch of dirt at the base of the Goshinboku's roots seemed to be glowing slightly as well, also pulsing in time with the jewel.

"What's going on?" she wondered out loud.

She recognized this light…it was spiritual magic; the same kind of light that she had seen around the Goshinboku back in the past when she had first fallen through the well, when Inuyasha had still been pinned. Kaede had revealed to her that nobody else had ever been able to see the light coming from the forest that she had seen, the light that had led her directly back to Inuyasha when Mistress Centipede had come for her in the village. But why was there a new glimmer of spiritual light coming from the soil now, and why was it pulsing in time with the Shikon no Tama?

Bending down, Kagome brushed the topsoil away with her hands, and as the dirt underneath became revealed, she found the glow was even stronger.

"Something's down there!" she gasped in surprise.

Quickly settling on her knees, the miko began to pull dirt from that spot with both hands, quickly becoming quite dirty in the process, though she didn't care.

The more earth she removed from that spot, the more intense the glowing became. It wasn't long before Kagome had dug a fairly deep hole in the soft soil, with over two feet of dirt piled off to the side of her. With mud and grass stains on her pants, and with dirt underneath her fingernails and on her face in streaks where she'd wiped away her sweat, Kagome suddenly felt her fingertips brush against something hard and smooth under the ground.

Wiping the last bit of dirt away, she found an ancient looking glass bottle. Unearthing it fully, she lifted it up, and found that the neck was sealed with what looked like a rosary of spiritual beads, a large one inside the lip of the rim, sealed around the edge with what looked like melted wax. It was the beads themselves that were glowing, shining so brightly now that they had been unearthed that she had to blink a few times to fight back the sting of tears. Unwrapping the long strand of beads, which was round several times around the bottle, Kagome examined them closely, and noted how they appeared to be made of youkai bone. Pulling on the string, she uncorked the bottle with a cracking sound of the wax seal breaking free, and with the bottle now in one hand and the rosary in the other, the beads, and the Shikon no Tama, both suddenly stopped glowing.

Holding up the bottle towards the moonlight, Kagome tried to peer inside of it, and though it was darkened with age and still covered in dirt, she thought it looked as though there was something, most likely red in color, shoved inside the bottle. Well of course there would be _something _inside the bottle, otherwise what would be the point? Finding a long twig, the miko poked it inside the bottle in an attempt to retrieve whatever it was that was hidden inside. Surprisingly, she got it out after only one try, and then immediately found that it was a patch of cloth.

_Wait a minute…_she realized suddenly._ This is Inuyasha's fire-rat! _

Frantically unrolling the fabric scroll with shaking fingers, Kagome immediately noticed the white embroidery, which seemed to shine with a silvery brilliance in the light of the moon, making it extremely easy to read.

_**Kagome, I didn't go with her; she released me. But I can't go to you, my side of the well is sealed without the jewel. Please come back to me. I love you too. **_

Scurrying up to her feet, Kagome was on autopilot as she ran down to the well-house, tears of joy streaking her dusty face. Holding the five hundred year old note tightly in her fist, for fear it would fade from existence should she loosen her grip of it even slightly, she dove head first into the well.


	5. I'll wait for you

Chapter 5 – I'll wait for you

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After burying the bottle, Inuyasha had half expected Kagome to appear in the well instantaneously. But of course, the magic of the Bone Eater's Well didn't work that way. Their timelines were in-synch, and he knew that one day for them equaled one day for Kagome. However long it took her to find the bottle on her side of time…that was how long it was going to take for her to return to his. Realizing this…he waited.

"I'm worried about Inuyasha," Sango murmured quietly to her fiancé. "All he does is spend each night sitting in the Goshinboku, and each day sitting by the well."

"I am worried about him as well," Miroku agreed, "But at least he has finally come to terms with his feelings for Kagome-sama."

Shippou, who happened to be within earshot of the pair, made his own presence known in that moment as he stated, "Hopefully she'll return soon. Inuyasha is no fun to bully while he's like this."

"Unfortunately, staring into the well isn't going to make Kagome-sama return any sooner." the monk commented quietly, as the three of them all stood at the edge of Inuyasha's forest, observing the hanyou who was surely aware of their presence, even though he chose to ignore them, his gaze never vacating the blackened depths of the inactive time portal as he knelt beside the well, his chin resting on his arms folded across the wooden frame as he peered downward.

"We've done all we can do." Sango agreed in that moment, nodding sadly.

"But unfortunately…" Miroku added, "…it appears that it wasn't enough, at least as far as he is concerned."

"Maybe you should talk to him." the slayer suggested in that moment.

"I don't think there's anything I can say that will help him any." Miroku stated solemnly, his eyes never leaving the image of his disheartened friend.

"Maybe so…" she conceded, "But if he gets angry with you, then that'll at least take his mind off of Kagome-chan for a minute." she added playfully.

"Hmm, I suppose you've got a point there." Miroku commented behind a chuckle, turning to gaze thoughtfully at the woman he loved before glancing back in Inuyasha's direction, stating, "I'll see what I can do."

"Thanks." was Sango's quick reply.

Stepping away from the trees, Miroku headed over towards the well, where Inuyasha was still sitting like a loyal dog awaiting his master's return. Remaining motionless, only the involuntary turn of his ear indicated his awareness of the ex-monk's arrival. Taking a lack of objection to his presence as acceptance, of sorts, Miroku continued in his approach until he was standing right beside the hanyou. He then wordlessly took a seat on the grass.

A few minutes passed by in silence, and then finally, Inuyasha was the one who spoke first as he grumbled, "What do you want, monk?"

Playfully correcting his friend, Miroku replied with, "Uh-uh-uh, ex-monk, remember?"

"Yeah," Inuyasha snorted, commenting sardonically, "'Cause you and Sango are gonna mate, freakin' good for you."

Miroku could clearly see that this was not the best way to handle things, so trying to change the subject as tactfully as possible, he quickly stated, "Let's not talk about me." asking the hanyou, "How are you feeling, Inuyasha?"

"Keh."

"I know…" the ex-monk replied, as if the hanyou had just spilled his heart in the single syllable. "We all miss Kagome-sama." Miroku added after a moment.

"You don't know shit!" the hanyou suddenly snapped. "None of you do!"

Inuyasha snarled, and was just getting ready to pound Miroku on the head like he would do Shippou, but then his friend's gently whisper of, "Enlighten me…" immediately doused the flames of his misplaced anger.

Settling back down, Inuyasha resumed his vigil gazing into the depths of the quiet time portal, grunting under his breath, "Ain't that what all that 'monk' stuff had been for?"

"Perhaps I have grown a bit rusty." Miroku stated behind a chuckle, adding, "Any input you could offer would be most appreciated."

"Keh." the hanyou murmured in that moment. "It's simple." he stated, his ears folding back into his hair. "I messed everything up, and now ain't nothing gonna fix it 'till Kagome comes back."

"Have you thought about what you'll say to her, when she does return?" Miroku asked next.

"I've said all I need to say in my note."

"What if she doesn't find the note?"

Miroku inwardly cringed as soon as the words left his lips. It hadn't been his intention to drag Inuyasha into a deeper depression. But surprisingly, the hanyou seemed rather confident all of a sudden, as he simply stated, "She'll find it.", his tone of voice leaving no room for argument.

The air of confidence in his friend's words caused Miroku to raise an eyebrow, and ask gently, "Are you quite certain?"

"Keh." he replied, acknowledging the man beside him as he turned his head to glance in Miroku's direction ever so briefly before turning his eyes back to the well. "I know my Kagome." Inuyasha stated with pride. "I know she'll go to the tree, I know she can feel me at the tree."

Letting his words trail off, Inuyasha added in his mind… _I just hope __she__ knows it…_

"I see…" was Miroku's reply, silently commending his friend on the strength of his belief.

"Why do you care, anyway?" Inuyasha suddenly spat in that moment, finally prying himself away from peering into the well as he moved to sit Indian style beside it, his hands tucked into the sleeves of his suikan as he shot Miroku an incredulous glare.

"I care about my friends." the ex-monk stated simply, adding, "And you, Inuyasha, are my friend."

"Keh"

"I also have faith that Kagome-sama will return to us." he continued, adding, "Just make sure that when she does, you never give her cause to leave again."

"What's _that_ supposed to mean?" Inuyasha demanded.

"Only that Kagome-sama is also my friend, and that I care about her feelings, as well." Miroku explained. "She has put up with too much for too long. She deserves happiness."

"Don't worry, I get it." Inuyasha mumbled in that moment, understanding his friend's words.

"Very good then," Miroku stated, standing back up, "I shall leave you to your vigil."

"Keh."

...

Inuyasha paced impatiently back and forth by the mouth of the well.

"Damn, it's been two weeks!" he spat impatiently. "What the hell? Hasn't she gone to the tree yet?"

Making his way over towards the Goshinboku, Inuyasha glared down at the freshly turned earth where his message was buried, as though accusing the bottle of having failed in its duty. In a single, effortless leap, the hanyou plopped himself up on the lowest branch, where he'd often sat in restless thought. That night, however, he found that sleep came easily enough, as he nodded off to what he hoped would be a peaceful, dreamless slumber.

But dreamland had other intentions, and instead of a peaceful night's rest, Inuyasha quickly found his unconscious mind plagued with a barrage of memories.

A montage of scenery flashed before his eyes, and had someone from Kagome's time managed to witness the images, they would have thought that the visions would make a good music video, with a soundtrack of Aerosmith's 'I don't want to miss a thing', or perhaps 'My heart will go on' from Titanic. Inuyasha, not knowing any of these songs, viewed the memories in eerie silence, except for what few sounds those memories themselves possessed.

_Awakening from his eternal slumber, he sees her before him…she looks like Kikyou, but she is not Kikyou_.

_So effortlessly, Kagome pulls Tetsusaiga from its seal_._ "Just shut up and let me protect you!" _

_He's human, injured, resting his head on her lap… "You smell nice…"_

_Busting through the door to rescue her from the false sage, he hadn't expected to see her naked! Thank kami she's alive…_

_He's jealous, and he's hurt_._ Why is she being so nice to that mangy wolf?_

_He sees the hurt in Kagome's eyes when she realizes he's been with Kikyou_.

_Kagome always treats his wounds, so now it's his turn to take care of her, as she drinks his mother's medicine_.

"_I love you…I love you as a half-demon_._" So soft, the feel of her lips upon his own_.

_Seeing her lifeless body along side their other friends, he has failed her, and for the first time since his mother's death, he sheds tears_.

With that last vision, Inuyasha unceremoniously bolted awake, still feeling the lingering emotions of the dream. Reaching up and wiping angrily at the tear tracks on his cheeks, Inuyasha didn't know how much more of this he would be able to take. He needed Kagome with him! Shaking his head in an attempt to free it from the images he knew had not been figments of his imagination, but actual memories, the hanyou then glanced sadly in the direction of the well. Kagome… She would eventually come back, wouldn't she? Even if she never found his message, she had still promised the kitsune that she would come back to visit from time to time, so surely he would see her again...one day. Wouldn't he? Reaching the boiling point of the pain that had been building within him for the last two weeks, it overflowed to spill into the fire of his heart, and unable to contain himself any longer, Inuyasha cried out her name at the top of his lungs.

A few sleeping birds stirred awake at the sound and flew out of the branches above him, but no other earthly presence seemed to acknowledge his cry. Miroku and the others were surely fast asleep by that time of night, and therefore had not heard him. Not that it would matter if anyone actually had, there was nothing that anyone could do to ease the pain of his self-inflicted broken heart. It was all his fault! _Everything_ was his fault! Jumping out of the sacred tree, Inuyasha headed back over towards the well. He would sleep inside it if he had to, just to be out of sight from the rest of the world. If he had to, he thought bitterly, he'd wait there for five hundred years, until his Kagome came back to him that way, even though he would be an old man by then.

Upon reaching the well, Inuyasha sat on its edge for some time, gazing into the darkness and willing it to light up with the blue shimmers of time travel. If only Kagome would come back to him, he would never be mean or rude to her ever again. He'd be kind, loving, tell her how he felt...he'd make her his mate!

Sighing, Inuyasha tilted his head back, gazing hopelessly up at the stars. He didn't know how long he stayed like that, but he was pulled back into himself when his nose started twitching at the sudden scent of tears. He wasn't crying. Looking back down, the hanyou literally fell over backwards in surprise as a brilliant blue light pierced through the darkness.

...

Looking up, Kagome saw stars and knew she had arrived safely in the Sengoku jida. Stepping forward, she grabbed the sturdiest vine and began her ascent. About half way up the miko's climb was suddenly cut short, when an arm draped in fire-rat fur suddenly descended into the well's depths, and grabbing hold of the hand attached to said arm Kagome quickly found herself lifted the rest of the way out of the well.


	6. Happy Ending

Chapter 6 – Happy Ending

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"Oh, Inuyasha!" Kagome stated joyously once the hanyou placed her feet upon the earth. "I-" The rest of her words were quickly cut off, however, as said hanyou abruptly pressed his lips upon her own.

Kagome immediately returned the kiss, doubling the passion. Reaching up and placing a hand upon the back of Inuyasha's head, she edged his lips with her tongue, encouraging them to open. They obeyed, and soon, the hanyou and miko were lost in a deep, hungry kiss, as they explored each other to the fullest.

With his hands now also pressed firmly against Kagome's back and neck, Inuyasha was the one to eventually end the kiss, offering a final nibble to her lower lip before pulling away completely.

Panting heavily, it took Kagome a moment before she tried to speak again.

"Inuyasha…I-"

"I love you Kagome!" he blurted out suddenly, needing to say it fast before any sort of hesitation might cause him to become tongue-tied.

"…I know." the miko replied with a smile. Glancing down, Inuyasha followed her gaze, quickly noting the strip of his suikan that she still held in her grasp.

Flashing Inuyasha a look of both joy and confusion, the hanyou knew he had some explaining to do and signaled for her to sit down on the grass beside the well. Quickly following suit, Inuyasha joined Kagome on the grass, plopping himself down so close to her position that their knees were almost touching. For once not feeling the hesitance he usually felt whenever it came to opening up about his feelings, Inuyasha was quick to explain to Kagome everything that had happened from the instant she had disappeared into the well. He told her how he had loved her, even in that moment, and that the reason he hadn't said anything at the time was because he had felt it was simply his duty to die with Kikyou, and that his love for her didn't matter. Except, his love for her _had _mattered, because it had been his heart's desire to be with Kagome that had physically prevented Kikyou from being able to cast her spell over him in order to drag him into Hell with her

He then went on to say how the concept of burying a message had been Kaede's idea, and that Sango had been the one to physically write it, although it had been his words. Kagome thought in that moment that she would have to thank them both about a million times over. Inuyasha then surprised Kagome by confessing how he'd been slowly going crazy for the last two weeks, wondering if he was ever going to see her again. Apologizing for what she had inadvertently put him through herself, since she'd had no idea that the well would stop working for him, the miko admitted in that moment to the deep depression she herself had been experiencing, having been outright convinced that she would never see _him_ again.

"Well, you'll never have to worry about that again." Inuyasha assured her in that moment, as he then went on to ask her to be his mate.

"W-what?" Kagome stuttered in total surprise.

"Will you be my mate?" he repeated, trying not to feel uneasy at her reaction. There was no repulsion in her scent, only shock.

"You mean, like your wife?" Kagome asked for clarification in that moment. She didn't want to risk misunderstanding him, even if the word 'mate' _was_ fairly self-explanatory.

"Basically." the hanyou confirmed. "Since inu-youkai mate for life." he added, his slight feeling of trepidation immediately leaving him at the new wave of happiness that flooded Kagome's scent. So it was with a huge grin that revealed his fangs that he asked playfully, "How do humans say it again? Oh yeah… Will you marry me?"

"YES!" she exclaimed at such volume that it frightened off the rest of the birds, before quickly lunging forward for another kiss.

Knocking Inuyasha off balance so that he fell backwards, Kagome landed on top of him, and paying no attention to the somewhat compromising position, she continued to bombard him with kisses. He was quick to respond as she felt his arms wrap up and around her body, holding her to him as he returned her passion kiss for kiss. Eventually ceasing her assault, Kagome pulled back only enough to gaze into his eyes. Surprised to note how dirty his face had suddenly become, it only then dawned on the miko just how grimy she was herself, having run straight there right after unearthing his buried message.

Blushing at the thought of her disheveled appearance, Kagome immediately jumped to her feet and attempted the best she could to brush herself off. Giving up after a moment, she proclaimed in embarrassment how much of a mess she was and how she'd better go get herself cleaned up.

"Keh, you look fine." stated in reply, conceding, "But come on, we'll get you a change of clothes back with Kaede-baba."

"Oh, but nobody even knows I'm here." Kagome commented while worrying her bottom lip with her teeth. "I went outside to the Goshinboku after everyone had already gone to bed, and then after I found your message, I ran straight here."

"Okay then…" he relented easily enough at her explanation, not wanting the girl's family to get worried. "We'll go back to your home."

"We?"

"Ain't no _way_ I'm lettin' you out of my sight again, woman."

"Baka!" she teased behind a chuckle. "I wouldn't have it any other way." she replied with a heartfelt smile.

The two went back through the well together in that moment, Inuyasha being able to pass through so long as he held onto Kagome's hand. Via the miko's favorite method of travel, hanyou-back-riding, they silently leapt up into her bedroom through the still open window. After getting herself cleaned up, Kagome invited Inuyasha to stay the night with her, and he offered no resistance to the suggestion, figuring that it wouldn't hurt anything to wait until tomorrow morning to return to Kaede's village.

Besides, Kagome needed to tell her family the good news! Not only of her recent engagement, but that Inuyasha was still alive!

They embraced each other all night, but didn't do anything beyond a few scattered kisses and 'over the clothes' touching, each of them both agreeing that they should wait until after Kagome was finished with her schooling to make the commitment official. She wanted to be able to devote herself fully to her new life with Inuyasha, but just as he had had some previous obligations, so did she. She had to finish school for her honor's sake, and for that same reason, she couldn't show up at school pregnant, either. He grinned to himself at the idea of Kagome carrying his child.

They also decided, since he'd never really be able to fit in in her time, that she would be the one to make the Feudal era her true home. At least since the jewel allowed her to continue to travel through the well back and forth, then it wasn't like she would never see her family again. If she had to choose between Inuyasha and her family, Kagome knew she would pick Inuyasha, but the miko was definitely relieved that she did not actually have to make such a decision. They would visit from time to time, just like any other grown-up child would visit with their parents once they'd left the nest.

Everyone took the news exceptionally well through their tearful reunion with the hanyou, except for Kagome's grandfather, of course, who needed a little more time to adjust to the idea of quarter-youkai great-grand-children. He eventually came around, though.

Having decided that it was important to her, and since Inuyasha had finally agreed that it was all right, Kagome ended up telling her three best school friends the truth about her hanyou, and about where – or more precisely _when _–she would be moving away to, once they were finished with high school. Kagome figured there was a good possibility that she'd never see any of them again. Yuka and Eri were a bit nervous, at first, but reluctantly decided that if that was what she truly wanted then they were happy for her. Ayumi thought the whole thing was hopelessly romantic, and was perhaps even a little jealous of the fact that she had no mystical magical lover of her own. Kagome figured that poor Houjou would probably end up giving himself a heart attack worrying about her well being if he knew the true nature of her situation, so she simply told him that she was engaged, and that she would be moving away after graduation, leaving the more vivid details to his simplistic imagination.

Heading back to Inuyasha's time, there was another tearful reunion – that time on Kagome's behalf – as she reunited with Miroku, Sango, Shippou and Kaede. Informing their friends of their engagement, the hanyou and miko received an equal round of excitement followed by congratulations. Perhaps it was due to the bliss of the moment, but Inuyasha even told Shippou that he could stay with them, once they got themselves a hut of their own. His words surprised everyone, including Kagome, but the hanyou merely shrugged. He'd never really minded Shippou all that much; he was just the runt of the pack, which was precisely why he picked on him all the time. If Inuyasha truly hadn't wanted Shippou around, then the kit wouldn't have been allowed to join the pack at all. With his chest puffing up in pride, Shippou proceeded to state how he could repay Inuyasha and Kagome for their kindness, by self-proclaiming himself future babysitter of their pups, when they eventually had some. His words made Inuyasha and his bride-to-be both blush tremendously, while everyone else broke into a fit of laughter at the sight of the couple's embarrassment.

"What?" Shippou questioned innocently, causing Kagome to forget her embarrassment in favor of smiling at the boy, assuring him that she was sure he would make a very good babysitter, indeed.

"May we employee him also?" Miroku asked slyly in that moment, causing _his_ bride-to-be to blush as well.

"Hentai…" Sango muttered under her breath, even though she was smiling.

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~ Fin ~


End file.
